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Joseph Kony

I can't watch at work right now, but can you give a cliff notes? I've seen this floating around a lot in the last couple of days. Thanks!
 
It's basically the story of Invisible Children - how it got started, why they exist - highlighting the abduction of children to man the armies of the LRA in Uganda.

Joseph Kony is the leader of the LRA and the #1 Most wanted person by the ICC.

Recently, the US has bowed to pressure from Invisible Children and other lobbyist to do something and try to apprehend Kony by helping the Ugandan army. However, if interest wanes, US could withdraw its support b/c Kony isn't a threat to the US' security or financial concerns. In reality, something needs to happen this year.

Invisible Children is seeking to make the name Joseph Kony famous, so that everyone knows who he is and the atrocities he has and is committing. He has largely been allowed to do what he does because of he has operated in relative global obscurity.
 
Thanks, good recap.
 
btw- (unrelated/related) how's your little man doing?
 
In 1988, Alice Lakwena established the Holy Spirit Movement, a resistance movement claimed to be inspired by the Holy Spirit of God. She portrayed herself as a prophet who received messages from the Holy Spirit of God. She expressed the belief that the Acholi could defeat the government run by Yoweri Museveni by casting off witchcraft and spiritualism embedded in their culture. According to her messages from God, her followers should cover their bodies with shea nut oil as protection from bullets, never take cover or retreat in battle, and never kill snakes or bees.[21]
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Joseph Kony would later preach a similar superstition encouraging soldiers to use oil to draw a cross on their chest as a protection from bullets. During an interview Alice Lakwena distanced herself from Kony, claiming that the spirit doesn’t want them to kill civilians or prisoners of war. Kony sought to align himself with Lakwena and in turn garner support from her constituents, even going so far as to claim they were cousins.[22] Meanwhile, Kony gained a reputation as having been possessed by spirits. He became a spiritual figure or a medium. Lakwena scored several key victories on the battlefield and began a march towards Kampala.[when?] Kony seized this opportunity to recruit members of the Ugandan People's Democratic Army (UPDA) and Holy Spirit remnants. In 1988, when Lakwena was defeated in Jinja and fled to Kenya, Kony became the leader of the Holy Spirit Mobile Force II some years later.
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Oh, religion.
 
i've seen this posted on fb a few times and just haven't had the time to watch it yet. so maybe this question is answered in the video (my apologies if it is).

what happens if/when he IS apprehended? how is the LRA structured? will somebody step up to take his place and just carry on business as usual, or will his apprehension effectively dissolve the LRA (i'm assuming the actual answer is somewhere between those two extremes)?

obviously his apprehension would be for the best regardless. just kind of wondering what will happen after that.
 
"Lord’s Resistance Army is just the name of the movement, because we are fighting in the name of God. God is the one helping us in the bush. That’s why we created this name, Lord’s Resistance Army. And people always ask us, are we fighting for the [biblical] Ten Commandments of God. That is true – because the Ten Commandments of God is the constitution that God has given to the people of the world. All people. If you go to the constitution, nobody will accept people who steal, nobody could accept to go and take somebody’s wife, nobody could accept to innocently kill, or whatever. The Ten Commandments carries all this.
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Forgot this little gem.
 
DeacHoops said:
i've seen this posted on fb a few times and just haven't had the time to watch it yet. so maybe this question is answered in the video (my apologies if it is).

what happens if/when he IS apprehended? how is the LRA structured? will somebody step up to take his place and just carry on business as usual, or will his apprehension effectively dissolve the LRA (i'm assuming the actual answer is somewhere between those two extremes)?

obviously his apprehension would be for the best regardless. just kind of wondering what will happen after that.
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I'm not an expert in this area, but my basic understanding is that the LRA is a highly armed cult of personality - if Kony is taken in, much of the LRA will be done. There will be remnants, and abusive practice of abducting child soldiers will still continue (as LRA is not alone in its practices - see Sierra Leone, etc.) But it would be a HUGE win for International Justice and would give many of these leaders pause to continue these practices, because they are now targeted by the ICC. Just the little support the US has given has caused Kony to change some of his tactics and he is afraid of being caught.

This is a some what informed view of things, but check out Invisible Children for more
 
Here's an alternative take on the whole Kony 2012.

http://purple-bones.tumblr.com/post/18895660571/kony-2012

I agree with parts of what he said. Most notably, that just because Kony is a horrible person that doesn't mean his enemies are righteous people.

Still I think it is good that this video is at least bringing the situation into more people's view. Hopefully they will look further into the matter rather than just agreeing with the Invisible Children group.
 
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TexasDeac10 said:
I'm not sure what to think about all of this. I see it popping up everywhere, but as well-intentioned as it is, there are critics out there making some good points.

http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs...kony-campaign/2012/03/07/gIQA7B31wR_blog.html
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Yeah, those are all valid concerns.

I think with any non-profit organization (especially one that excels with marketing) there is some caution needed to be sure that they don't view their cause as THE cause - and the media savvy tend to get more attention. No, Kony isn't uniquely evil, but the IV guy is a filmmaker - it's what he does.
 
If you ever want to be truly depressed about humanity there's always the "Children in War" documentary and book. I'm not sure if the documentary is floating around anywhere since it was originally aired 12 years ago on HBO but the book is still around, we had to read it my freshman year in the war seminar I took and its still on my bookshelf.

http://www.videoverite.tv/childreninwar/index2.html

In Children in War, based on their acclaimed television documentary, filmmakers Alan and Susan Raymond tell the tragic story of life during wartime through the voices of children in Bosnia, Israel, Rwanda, and Northern Ireland. Their stories, drawings, and photo images tell us of atrocities they have witnessed, losses they have suffered, and in some cases, hopes that still prevail.
 
HuskyDeac said:
Hopefully they will look further into the matter rather than just agreeing with the Invisible Children group.
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Yeah, this is the key - increased awareness and discussion is always a good thing.

I'm hoping it turns people's eyes toward the problem, but that it doesn't become the most recent "It's cool to be social justice-y" fad.

Unfortunately, our cultural constantly defines itself horizontally in relation to others so it's actually more important to seem good than to actually do good things - and an entire industry has capitalized on this (see: product (red), TOMS, LightGivesHeat, etc.) While they are doing good (some more than others) - it's feeding the narcissism of the West and further removing us from the actual problems because we try material solutions to relational problem.

I can't fault the IV guys because they met people in a circumstance that is not ok and it fueled a passion in them to do something about it through using their gifts. They may not have the broader perspective, but they are pouring out their lives for the benefit of those who have no voice.
 
I have way too much I want to say on this

As someone who lives and works in Africa I understand the sentiment that Kony is a terrible man, and he is.

But I also know that people really need to think about

a) Invisible Children and throroughly investigate all of their clams

b) what happens if Kony was to be taken out? What happens then to both the people and children that Americans want to save

Anyway, I have way too many thought to post here. It is an interesting topic
 
IamThunderbolt said:
Yeah, this is the key - increased awareness and discussion is always a good thing.

I'm hoping it turns people's eyes toward the problem, but that it doesn't become the most recent "It's cool to be social justice-y" fad.

Unfortunately, our cultural constantly defines itself horizontally in relation to others so it's actually more important to seem good than to actually do good things - and an entire industry has capitalized on this (see: product (red), TOMS, LightGivesHeat, etc.) While they are doing good (some more than others) - it's feeding the narcissism of the West and further removing us from the actual problems because we try material solutions to relational problem.

I can't fault the IV guys because they met people in a circumstance that is not ok and it fueled a passion in them to do something about it through using their gifts. They may not have the broader perspective, but they are pouring out their lives for the benefit of those who have no voice.
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THis is a very good post and I think is pretty much where I fit
 
IamThunderbolt said:
Yeah, this is the key - increased awareness and discussion is always a good thing.

I'm hoping it turns people's eyes toward the problem, but that it doesn't become the most recent "It's cool to be social justice-y" fad.

Unfortunately, our cultural constantly defines itself horizontally in relation to others so it's actually more important to seem good than to actually do good things - and an entire industry has capitalized on this (see: product (red), TOMS, LightGivesHeat, etc.) While they are doing good (some more than others) - it's feeding the narcissism of the West and further removing us from the actual problems because we try material solutions to relational problem.

I can't fault the IV guys because they met people in a circumstance that is not ok and it fueled a passion in them to do something about it through using their gifts. They may not have the broader perspective, but they are pouring out their lives for the benefit of those who have no voice.
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Yes, but most people don't understand the problems or have any idea how to even begin to solve them. Sure, it would be great for everyone to be educated on the issues and take an active role in helping to solve them, but that is not the reality we live with. People buying a product that raises money to help other people certainly shouldn't be looked at as a bad thing. Obviously, we need to work to create institutional change (that would allow for economic development so people could buy their own shoes) in a lot of developing countries, but criticizing people for buying shoes that provide other people shoes in the short term isn't the answer either. Creating that change takes time and in the meantime it certainly isn't a bad thing that more people have shoes that can make their daily lives a little bit easier.
 
DeacdeTejas said:
I have way too much I want to say on this

As someone who lives and works in Africa I understand the sentiment that Kony is a terrible man, and he is.

But I also know that people really need to think about

a) Invisible Children and throroughly investigate all of their clams

b) what happens if Kony was to be taken out? What happens then to both the people and children that Americans want to save

Anyway, I have way too many thought to post here. It is an interesting topic
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I don't know much about this situation at all or Invisible Children but thought this article brought up some good issues. (Sorry if it is HAAS - it didn't look like the same articles already linked but may be)
 
GreenDeac said:
Yes, but most people don't understand the problems or have any idea how to even begin to solve them. Sure, it would be great for everyone to be educated on the issues and take an active role in helping to solve them, but that is not the reality we live with. People buying a product that raises money to help other people certainly shouldn't be looked at as a bad thing. Obviously, we need to work to create institutional change (that would allow for economic development so people could buy their own shoes) in a lot of developing countries, but criticizing people for buying shoes that provide other people shoes in the short term isn't the answer either. Creating that change takes time and in the meantime it certainly isn't a bad thing that more people have shoes that can make their daily lives a little bit easier.
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Would it change your mind if I told you none of that works? (The products not eco dev)
 
GreenDeac said:
Yes, but most people don't understand the problems or have any idea how to even begin to solve them. Sure, it would be great for everyone to be educated on the issues and take an active role in helping to solve them, but that is not the reality we live with. People buying a product that raises money to help other people certainly shouldn't be looked at as a bad thing. Obviously, we need to work to create institutional change (that would allow for economic development so people could buy their own shoes) in a lot of developing countries, but criticizing people for buying shoes that provide other people shoes in the short term isn't the answer either. Creating that change takes time and in the meantime it certainly isn't a bad thing that more people have shoes that can make their daily lives a little bit easier.
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I don't' think it's necessarily a bad things at all - just an incomplete solution. I own products from all of the companies I mentioned. I own multiple pairs of TOMS and am working with them this summer to help some folks who really need shoes. My critique is not completely of the companies, they are doing good. I don't look down on folks that buy these things (b/c as I've said - my closet is full of this stuff). It's a great first step - and much better than not doing anything, but it also isn't really enough - and doesn't really affect a lot of change. There is also a unintended consequence that we should guard against. We (and I include myself in this because I care way more than I should what others think about me) as a culture tend to purchase things based on what image we want to project and if we aren't careful, our "activism" is just a fad. What happens when the fad shifts? Hopefully of the masses that are told about these issues through products/media blitzes, etc. 5% will find a passion for a people they didn't know before. While 95% may move on to the next thing, those 5% can do incredible things - like Invisible Children, Blood:Water Mission, Heart for Africa, Change for Change, etc.
 
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